NBC's 'Revolution': Show to get 'bigger, better, even more exciting'

When "Revolution" finally returns to NBC on March 25, the Monroe Republic powers up and the battle begins. But will viewers return in force?

NBC has taken some heat for the decision to bench its biggest scripted hit for several months -- a strategy that has proved detrimental to other network shows. However, the "Revolution" brain trust actually is pleased with the move.

Executive producer J.J. Abrams told journalists at the TV critics press tour on Sunday that he was "enormously relieved" when he learned of the extended hiatus. He pointed out that the show will now be able to air the second half of its season straight through, free of repeats.

And creator Eric Kripke noted that the post-apocalyptic series had a "natural break" at its winter finale, anyway.

"Luckily, the second half lives as its own continuous piece that is bigger, better and even more exciting," he said.

Abrams and Kripke, who appeared here with cast members, were stingy with details about the second half of the season, which will pick up exactly where the story left off.

"We'll deliver on the title," Kripke said. "The revolution begins. ... Now, can this family stick together in the face of overwhelming odds and danger? And can you maintain your soul in the midst of battle?"

Kripke added that the break gave him and his writers a chance to "take a breath, look at we've done and analyze."

And the result of his analysis? The show succeeded on several levels, but was a "little too slow" in delivering its stunning revelations.

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"We could pick up the pace," said Kripke, who wants "Revolution" to be "more shocking, more often."

But not too shocking. Kripke stressed that, above all else, "Revolution" is designed to be a family show -- a swashbuckling saga about a group of gutty warriors banding together in a world gone dark.